"Lazy days of summer" ...what?! This summer has been so much busier than I anticipated and it's all been good, but it's sure keeps me hopping. I could barely move on Monday morning because I had actually taken time to relax on the weekend, and I've noticed that when I stop moving all exhaustion catches up to me. Carrie keeps telling me that I just have to say "no", but it's so hard to say "no" to things I want to do. So to catch you up to speed on my life here and now, I give you a random post of randomness, with a few pictures that I took very quickly in between showers.
These are a few of my favorite things...
One of my favorite things is a freshly mowed lawn. It's been so hot here lately that we haven't mowed everything the last number of weeks, so this was the first time in three weeks that everything's been mowed at the same time. I spent a total of 9 hours on the tractor yesterday and today - which I think is actually record time for me to get my part all mowed. Now that I think about it I wonder if I missed something...hmmm...
Ahhh... so satisfying.
Freshly washed bed sheets that have been dried on the clothesline are also up there on my list of favorite things, just for the record.
My new job...
For the last year or so my faculty supervisor has been asking me to do some research assistant work for him and I've finally given in. He's currently in the process of revising one of his books ("Spiritual caregiving in the hospital" by Schipani and Bueckert) so I've been helping with that and also serving as a sounding board for his next project.
Growing like a weed...
...but fortunately the weeds aren't growing at quite the same rate that they were earlier, though my garden does need to be weeded again.
On Monday alone I picked 46 cucumbers from my 3 little plants. One of my friends called and asked if I had extra cucumbers - what a lifesaver!
Tomatoes are starting to ripen so I'll be up to my ears in tomatoes in about a week. I'm waiting for my roommate to return so she can help me can them, but I'm peeling, seeding, and freezing them so that they're ready to go for canning. Last weekend we had a thunderstorm roll through here with high winds and it did quite a number on the plants - all but one of my 10 plants was lying down. I spent an hour-and-a-half yesterday evening re-staking all my tomatoes. We had another thunderstorm today and all of them stayed standing. I took these pics about 2 hours after the storm. I love that the ground here is so sandy - 2 hours after a heavy rain I can walk in the garden mud-free.
The watermelons are growing by leaps and bounds, and the spaghetti squash too - each day I can see a difference. My zucchini plants aren't producing as much as last year, which is actually quite the blessing. The corn will be ready to be picked within the next few days as well.
(Compare these pics to July 3rd's post)
Wildlife sightings on campus...
Last summer we had a family of wild turkeys, a mother and 3 babies, living with us on campus. This summer we have a mother with 7 babies. I usually see them out and about at least a couple of times a day.
We've also been seeing skunks wandering around in the middle of the day - a little strange. There's one that likes to hang out in a bush right near the main building. One day Cara and I were weeding not 3 feet away from the bush and when we stood up after we were done out wandered the skunk. Too close for comfort, I say.
And today when I was mowing I scared a possum out of it's hiding place. That's the first time in my life I've seen a live possum, and I wouldn't mind if it was the last time. They are ugly!
Canning has begun...
I've made 13 jars of mom's dill pickles and 7 jars of zucchini relish thus far. I've started begging people to take my cucumbers because there are only so many pickles I can make and only so many that two people can eat.
Moonlighting...
One of the professors here at AMBS spends his summers renovating houses and when he asked the maintenance supervisor for a recommendation, my name and Cara's name came up. So we've been over there painting when we've had a few extra hours in the evenings.
At long last, scrapbooking...
It's been a whole year since I've really gotten down to scrapbooking. This past weekend was dedicated to organizing my photos and letting the creativity flow. I actually just finished scrapbooking my pictures from August 2009 so I'm only 1 year behind now. It was my goal to get all caught up again this summer but I kind of doubt that will happen.
The countdown is on...
Only 17 more sleeps until I leave for Manitoba to go and get Carrie! This is the longest we've gone without seeing each other in our 8 years of roommate-ship. Definitely miss her.
Road trip...
This weekend I'm heading out to Virginia with two of my friends to help one of them move. Apparently something is also being planned for my birthday as part of the trip, but I have no idea what's up. I guess we'll see...
Well, that's a bit of what I've been up to. There's more that I could write but I'm going to try and be responsible and get to bed at a decent hour this evening. 6:50 am has been coming too early the last few mornings. Good night.
3 comments:
I've only ever seen road-kill possum...doubt I'd enjoy seeing a real live one! Sure sounds like you're busy!
every year I look for people who have extra cucumbers, I've yet to get my hands on enough to pickle. If I was closer I would definately hit you up for some! I don't know if theres a limit to how many pickles I can eat... :)
I too have been scrapbooking. I'm doing a birthday scrapbook for ben's dad. I've been loving it, but anxious to get to my own photos.
I am loving summer, but am so jealous of your garden. I am hoping to get ben to put in a garden next year.
I can't believe you guys have been roommates for 8 years! Man time flies!!
Glad to see you're enjoying your summer.
Post a Comment